Budget, Education and Science, Labour Unions, Latvia, Wages

Earlier Vanaga said that the LIZDA Council would decide on the form of the protest, but today the council decided that if there is still no certainty about the pay increase and its schedule by March, the trade union should go ahead with protests, the form of which would be decided in March.

The leader of the trade union noted that Finance Minister Janis Reirs (New Unity) and Education and Science Minister Ilga Suplinska (New Conservative Party) promised at a Cabinet sitting that the government would resume the discussion on the teachers' wages in March. Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins (New Unity) in his letter to LIZDA also mentioned the discussion in March. 

"These are promises made by the leading policymakers in the education sector, but if we are not heard, there will be protests," Vanaga said.

Earlier Vanaga said that the government and parliament have made some concessions and the teachers therefore should not start their protests already in November or December.

LIZDA indicated that according to the teachers' pay rise schedule, their minimum monthly wage should rise from EUR 710 to EUR 750 as of January 1, 2020 and from EUR 750 to EUR 790 as of September 2020.